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THE 

UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI 

BULLETIN 



EXTENSION SERIES 



VOLUME I 



NUMBFR 1 



CONSOLIDATION OF SCHOOLS 
IN MISSOURI 

BY 

R. H. Emberson 
Assistant. Professor of Rural Education 




UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI 

COLUMBIA/ MISSOURI 
October. 1913 

Monograph 



THE 

UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI 

BULLETIN 

EXTENSION SERIES 

VOLUME I NUMBER 3 



CONSOLIDATION OF SCHOOLS 
IN MISSOURI 

BY 

R. H. Emberson 

u 

Assistant Professor of Rural Education 




UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI 

COLUMBIA, MISSOURI 
October, 1913 









1/ 



t to 



CONTENTS. 

Page 

Nature of Consolidation 3 

Advantages of Consolidation 6 

Objections to Consolidation 12 

Consolidation in Missouri 15 

How to Consolidate 16 

Law for Consolidation .• • 18 

Law for Joint High Schools 19 

Law for Transportation 20 



CONSOLIDATION OF SCHOOLS IN MISSOURI 

INTRODUCTION 

In November, 1911, the University issued a bulletin on consolida- 
tion of rural schools. This second bulletin has been prepared to 
explain the new consolidation laws, to create sentiment in favor of 
the movement, and to suggest plans of procedure. 

All literature on the subject has been examined and that which 
is applicable to Missouri has been used. Much material has been 
collected by correspondence with experts upon consolidation in sev- 
eral states. 

The University of Missouri has established a Bureau of Consoli- 
dation to which letters upon any of the questions involved may be 
addressed. Plats and information about proposed plans may be sent 
to the Bureau if an opinion as to methods of procedure is desired. 
The University, the State Department of Education, the Normal 
Schools, and a number of county superintendents are all deeply 
interested in consolidation and will gladly give assistance whenever 
it is possible. 

Address all communications with the University to the Bureau of 
Consolidation, University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri. 

THE NATURE OF CONSOLIDATION 

The most important educational problem in America is that of 
the rural schools. The last generation has witnessed great advance- 
ment along educational lines but it has been confined to city schools, 
normal schools and universities. Little progress has been made in 
the country schools. These institutions have not felt the influence 
of the forward movement that has characterized the last two decades. 
There are some good country schools in v/hich earnest, capable men 
and women are doing excellent work but the great majority of them 
are not serving the community needs. 

It is useless to talk about restoring the old-fashioned country 
school. The large enrollment which was due to the attendance of 
grown boys and girls is a thing of the past. The social interest and 
coherence that once made these schools a center of influence is no 
longer possible. In order to put new life into country schools and 
to restore them to their former usefulness, it is necessary to have 
larger school units. This is possible under consolidation, a plan 
which has commended itself to thinking people and has been tried 
in many states. 

(3) 



4 UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI BULLETIN 

By consolidation is meant the combining of two or more dis- 
tricts or parts of districts, each having three directors, into one large 
district having six directors. It means the same business manage- 
ment applied in the rural schools that is applied in city schools. It 
means cooperation which is a principle that must be applied in the 
solution of the Rural Life Problem. 

The American farmer is independent; his mode of life has made 
him such. His task has been to clear forests, erect homes and to 
undergo hardship. The distance between rural homes has developed 
a spirit of self-reliance. But while the environment of the farmer 
has developed some noble characteristics, he has failed to realize the 
great advantage of cooperation which has contributed so much to 
modern enterprises found in the cities. 

The chief reason for the great development of the city as com- 
pared with the county is due to cooperation. The water plant, the 
lighting system, the paving and the sewerage could not be accom- 
plished by one individual working alone. Yet it is not difficult when 
the municipality as a whole puts its hand to the task. 

Consolidation means cooperation in rural school affairs. What 
is impossible for one district working alone, becomes an easy matter 
where three or four or five districts work together. 

There is only one principle upon which to work for consolida- 
tion of schools. That is, improved service. Cheapness is no argu- 




One of the log school houses still in use in Missouri, 
this environment that appeals to country children. 



There is nothing in 



CONSOLIDATION OF SCHOOLS 5 

ment. The school which gives the people the best service for the 
money spent is the best school. 

Farmers realize the importance of fertile soil, better barns and 
improved machinery but they have shown very little concern in the 
welfare of the rural school. They make liberal investments in land, 
stock and farm equipment and they will even borrow money for 
these things, while the school and those things that make for its 
efficiency are neglected. Poor buildings, poor equipment, poor ar- 
rangement and unsanitary conditions in the school are continued 
year after year. Country people need to realize that a poor school 
is very dear at any price. Only when the school is run at the highest 
rate of speed, only when every day counts for something in the life 
of its pupils is the institution doing work that is really worth while. 

Country schools are maintained on very low taxes. The number 
of children enrolled in the city schools of Missouri is not as large 
as the number enrolled in the country schools, yet the city spends 
in buildings, equipment and teachers over four times as much for 
the education of its children as the country spends. 

The average annual salary for teachers in country schools is 
$302.01, while in cities it is $624.83. The annual expenditure per 
child enrolled in the country school is $10.38, while in the city school 
it is $24.16. The average levy for school purposes in the country 
is 53.2 cents on the $100.00 valuation, while in the city it is 98.6 cents. 
This shows that the cities are spending very much more money for 
the maintenance of their schools than the country is spending and 
this is the chief reason why the schools in the city have made so 
much more progress during the last twenty years than the country 
schools have made. People in the town want good schools and are 
willing to pay for them. The country child, however, is entitled to 
as good opportunity to secure an education as that afforded the city 
child. 

A consolidated school in which a good high school is maintained 
will cost more than a one-room school, but it will give country 
children much better advantages — it will give them a "square deal." 

It might be possible to run consolidated schools as cheaply as 
one-room schools but they would be poor and unsatisfactory. No 
community should boast of a cheap school; it should not be satisfied 
with anything but the best. The question should be, "How well has 
the money been spent?" 

When the advantages of consolidated schools are once under- 
stood, more people will favor the plan. In many sections of the 
state the people will vote for better schools if the matter is brought 
forcibly to their attention and made clear. The friends of consolida- 



g UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI BULLETIN 

tion should make the proposition plain and simple and the agitation, 
should be for good schools and not for cheap schools. 

ADVANTAGES OF CONSOLIDATION 

The friends of good schools often desire a statement of the ad- 
vantages to be gained by consolidation. In this bulletin an attempt 
has been made to bring together results that have followed from 
actual cases of consolidation and thus to give practical suggestions 
to those interested in the proposition. 

I. It Educates the Child at Home. Through consolidation 
country boys and girls are furnished a good education from the pri- 
mary grades through the high school, without sending them away 
from home. Where the plan is adopted it is not necessary to send 
boys and girls who have completed the common school course to 
town and to board them in a strange home, in order to give them 
high school advantages; neither is it necessary to leave the farm and 
to move to town for this purpose. 

Consolidation gives boys and girls in the rural districts equal 
advantages with children in cities and towns. It gives them the 
advantages of good graded schools and of a high school. They spend 
the day under the supervision of well trained teachers working with 
their neighbors and friends. At the close of the school day they 
return to their own homes where they assist in the chores and the 
evening is spent studying under parental care and oversight. 

In consolidated districts where a high school is maintained, the 
course of study can be so arranged as to give a good course in agri- 
culture, domestic science and manual training. This tends to keep 
boys and girls on the farm instead of encouraging them to leave it 
and to go to town. They are kept in touch with the open country 
where three-fourths of them will spend their lives. This is one of 
the best advantages of the plan. Under the present system only five 
per cent of country children are able to get the advantages of a high 
school by leaving home and going to the city. By consolidation 
these advantages would be brought to every boy and girl within the 
consolidated district. 

II. Health Is Improved. The health of the pupils is better 
guarded when they are conveyed from their homes to the school in 
comfortable vehicles, warm and dry, than when they have to travel 
through mud and snow a mile or two and sit all day with wet feet 
and soggy clothing as they often do under present conditions. 

Pupils are under the care of responsible persons from the time 
they leave home in the morning until they return at night. This tends 
to prevent difficulties on the way home such as loitering, quarrelling, 



8 



UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI BULLETIN 



etc. Children are protected from those offences against decency and 
good morals so common on the road to and from school — conditions 
well understood by everyone who has given the matter serious con- 
sideration. 

III. The Economy of the Plan. There are, on an average, three 
pupils every year finishing work in each country school. If four dis- 
tricts should combine this would make the number twelve. If it cost 
$200.00 per year to pay the board, tuition, and other necessary ex- 
penses of each of these pupils to attend a high school in town (a 
moderate estimate), the total cost would amount to $2400.00. A good 
teacher can be secured to give these pupils two years high school 
training for $900.00 a year, which would make a net saving of $1500.00. 
In case two teachers should be employed, it is safe to say that the 
amount spent by the district for high school training in city schools 
would pay the salary of the teachers and janitor service and there 
would be a good balance remaining. 

Under this system the rich and the poor would have nearly equal 
advantages in securing a high school education. What is now the 
privilege of the few would become equally the opportunity of all. It 
gives an opportunity to the promising, ambitious boy or girl regard- 




Manual training is provided in many rural high schools. This is one of 
the advantages of consolidation as it makes such work possible. 



CONSOLIDATION OF SCHOOLS 9 

less of wealth; and in return the State is undoubtedly richer because 
of the citizenship of superior quality and efficiency. 

The argument to be stressed, however, is not decreased expenses 
but improved service. 

IV. Social Advantages of Consolidation. Consolidation tends 
toward a more healthy spirit in the school and in the community. 
The outdoor games, the debating clubs, literary societies, musical 
organizations and contests with other schools all tend to create a 
school spirit which is not possible under the present one-room sys- 
tem. Pride and public interest in the school are quickened and con- 
fidence and enthusiasm are inspired. These results are possible only 
when a large number of persons are brought together as consolida- 
tion brings them. The new law requires consolidated schools to 
have an auditorium which is used for literary societies, debating clubs, 
musical entertainments, lectures and farmers' institutes. This ar- 
rangement affords a common meeting place, a community center, 
not only for the consolidated district but for a much larger section. 

These things are worth considering if country life is to be made 
permanent and satisfying. It is natural for young people to love 
society and to be interested in all social events. A community which 
gives attention only to hard, driving work, which makes no pro- 
vision for good, wholesome recreation for the young people need 
not be surprised if it finds them drifting into the cities where the 
glare of electric lights and the glamour of pool halls and cheap 
theaters are in sharp contrast to the barren social life in many country 
communities. 

V. Better Attendance. When children are conveyed to school, 
the problem of truancy and tardiness is pratically solved. In a 
recent investigation made of 275 rural schools located in different 
sections of the state, it was estimated that the enrollment in the first 
and second grades, the first two years of school work, was 2071, 
while in the seventh and eighth grades, or the last two years of 
school work, it was 1175. This is a great waste. Country people 
would not think of permitting such a waste in their corn crop, their 
cattle or their hogs, yet they are contented to let these conditions 
continue in their schools. Consolidation improves attendance. In 
some instances it has been known to increase from fifty to nearly one 
hundred per cent. 

VI. Better Teaching. In case the school is centralized and all 
the pupils are brought together and classified, the improved condi- 
tions cause greater enthusiasm on the part of teachers and greater 
interest in their work. They feel the effect of cooperation and pro- 
fessional contact which is a marked contrast to that of one teacher 
working alone with no companionship but that of children. 



"LQ UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI BULLETIN 

Under consolidation, the school is graded. The teacher has 
fewer daily recitations which affords more time for preparation and 
longer recitation periods. 

If the grade work is continued in the original one-room build- 
ings (the "ward schools"), there is still some system of organization 
and cooperation, and all of the "ward schools" will be attempting 
to do the same line of work in order to meet the requirements of 
the high school. The high school will influence each teacher and 
each school to do the best possible. It will increase attendance in 
the "ward schools" and will more than double the number of pupils 
completing the eighth grade and entering high school. It will be 
possible for the principal of the central high school to meet the 
teachers of the "ward schools" for the purpose of planning the work, 
arranging examinations and graduations, and considering other things 
of a professional nature. 

Consolidation tends to lengthen the tenure of position. One of 
the evils of the rural school system of Missouri is the frequent 
change of teachers. It is seldom that a teacher remains in one school 
long enough to become thoroughly acquainted with conditions. The 
report of the State Superintendent of Public Schools for 1912 shows 
that there are 9868 teachers in the rural schools of Missouri, and of 
this number 6716 or over 68 per cent who are teaching their first 
year in their present position. Consolidated schools will attract 
teachers of training and experience and they will be retained longer 
in their positions. 

VII. Better Equipment. Consolidation will bring about more 
commodious schoolhouses and better equipment. In a centralized 
school there can be many more accommodations because it will not 
be necessary to duplicate the apparatus for each separate school. 
This would insure a much better and larger equipment for the school 
as a whole. There would also be greater interest taken in the im- 
provement of the grounds and the improvement and care of the 
building. 

VIII. Other Advantages. The consolidated country school is 
the ideal place to get boys and girls interested in the school garden, 
in poultry management, dairying, domestic science, agriculture, and 
manual training. It makes the farm the ideal place in which to bring 
up children. It affords them the culture necessary for good citizen- 
ship; it affords the vocational training necessary to success in life; 
it broadens and brightens country life and brings about the closest 
cooperation between the school and the home. 



-J2 UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI BULLETIN 

OBJECTIONS TO CONSOLIDATION 

A large number of objections to consolidation are made, especially 
iby those who have never tried the plan. A careful investigation 
■shows that where the plan has been tried the people are overwhelm- 
ingly in favor of it. Only in cases where there is some natural disad- 
vantage as a large stream of water flowing through the district or some 
•other considerable obstacle has there been any objection made that 
is worth while. Investigation shows that less than three per cent 
•of the people in consolidated districts favor a return to the old sys- 
tem. Some of the objections are the following: 

I. Abandonment of Old Buildings. One of the most frequently 
mentioned objections and one that often causes districts to hesitate 
to make a trial of consolidation, is the necessity of abandoning the 
•old buildings and erecting a new one. 

The answer to this objection is a plan that has been tried in 
many places. If the school buildings are too good to be abandoned, 
;the people should vote upon consolidation with the understanding 
that the old buildings are to be used. Two or three of the best build- 
ings could be moved to the place selected for the site of the consoli- 
dated school. One could be used for the elementary grades, one for 
the advanced grades and one for the high school work. It is better, 
however, to erect a modern building, where all grades can be taught. 

II. Increased Expense. Many patrons oppose the plan on ac- 
count of the increased expense. In the campaign for consolidation 
in Missouri there are really but two objections to meet; one is trans- 
portation, the other is the expense — the latter in fact includes the 
former. 

The following statistics taken from reports of some of the 
counties in this State show the conditions of some of the rural 
schools and the advantages that would be gained by sonsolidation: 
'Two schools have a daily attendance of 11 and 26 respectively; teach- 
ers' salaries $30.00 and $50.00 respectively. By consolidation one 
-teacher could do the work of the two schools and there would be a 
saving of $30.00 per month or $240.00 for eight months. Four schools 
'have a daily attendance of 22, 30, 10 and 13 respectively, total attend- 
ance, 75. Teachers' salaries $50.00, $75.00, $55.00 and $50.00, total 
.$230. Two teachers could do the work thus saving $130.00 per month 
or $1040.00 for eight months. Other examples might be given but 
these are enough to show that consolidation would not always in- 
•crease the expense. If the children in the four schools mentioned 
should be provided with transportation, there would still be money 
■saved. It should be remembered, however, that the greatest gain 
would be in the spirit, interest, and efficiency of the school work. 



CONSOLIDATION OF SCHOOLS 



13 



It is possible under consolidation to employ cheap teachers, to 
•crowd the rooms, to run a poor high school or none at all and by 
this means show a considerable saving in the cost. While this plan 
would please a few, still it will not be adopted by the great majority 
of patrons in Missouri. Men may be indifferent and hard to arouse 
concerning the improvement of educational conditions for their 
children; still, very few will deliberately adopt a plan simply because 
it is cheap. 

The chief characteristic of the consolidated school is its effi- 
ciency — its improved service; and improvement whether in pigs, cat- 
tle, crops, or schools means an expenditure of time and money. 

A late report of the State Superintendent of Education shows 
that there are nearly eight thousand non-resident pupils in the high 
schools of this State. Putting the tuition of each pupil at $3.00 
per month and supposing that one-half of them board in town, 
it is a conservative estimate to place the tuition and board of these 
country students, for eight months, at $650,000. If this money were 
spent in rural high schools, it would be sufficient to employ good, 
well-trained teachers, pay janitor bills, and other expenses; and then 
provide transportation for all pupils of the consolidated district. If 
rural high schools should be established throughout the State, it is 
altogether probable that the number of country students attending 
high schools would be doubled at once. 

III. Objection to Giving Up Local Organization.— There are 
some who claim that if the local board is abolished and the affairs 
of the consolidated district are put into the hands of six men chosen 
as directors, that all kinds of calamities will follow. They say that 
there will be discrimination against the locality in which they live 
and that they will have no voice in the management of the consoli- 
dated school. There are two good answers. One is that where 
consolidation has been tried — in thirty-five states, and in some states 
for over twenty years — no complaint of this nature has ever been 
made. 

The other answer is that consolidated rural school of Missouri 
would probably be composed of three, four, or five districts uniting, 
with an aggregate enumeration of 200 pupils. All cities have a board 
of directors which handles great problems, large expenditures, some- 
times amounting to millions of dollars, and scores of ward schools 
and handles them with great efficiency. 

For instance, Kansas City has 79 schools, 1043 teachers and 37,937 
pupils. The board is composed of six members, one member for 
about 13 schools, 174 teachers and 6323 pupils. St. Louis has 114 
schools, 2165 teachers and 88,002 pupils. The board is composed of 
12 members, one member for about 9 schools, 180 teachers and 7333 



24 UNIVERSITY OP MISSOURI BULLETIN 

pupils. If the boards of these two cities can look after the interests; 
of this number of schools, teachers and pupils to the general satis- 
faction of all concerned, it does seem reasonable to suppose that a 
board of six intelligent farmers could take care of a consolidated 
district of three, four or five teachers and two hundred pupils, in a 
fair and impartial manner. 

IV. Dirt Roads. Some argue that consolidation will not be pos- 
sible in Missouri until the state has some system of macadamized 
roads. This argument can be answered in a few words. Iowa and 
Illinois have consolidated schools and are transporting the children 
over dirt roads. In the John Swaney School, Putnam County, Illi- 
nois, where the soil is as black and as deep as can be found, the 
school vehicles pass over dirt roads and yet there is no complaint 
made along this line. 

The dirt roads of Missouri are bad enough and should be im- 
proved. There is no argument against that fact, but when milk, but- 
ter, coal, feed and the mail are delivered daily over these roads there 
seems no good reason why children could not be conveyed to school 
over them. 

V. Careless Drivers. Many seem to think that careless drivers 
will be employed who will not attend to the comforts of the children. 
Where this plan has been tried it has been satisfactory. Drivers are 
required to sign a contract to start at a certain hour and to deliver 
the children at school on time. The driver is required to furnish a 
good safe team and a wagon fitted with seats and a good cover. He 
gives bond for the faithful performance of his duty. 

VI. Cost of Transportation. The cost per pupil for transporta- 
tion ranges from $1.00 to $3.00 per month. In some localities no 
transportation is provided by the public, but each family makes its 
own arrangement. It has been true in nearly every consolidated dis- 
trict where the schools have been centralizd, that the saving in teach- 
ers' salaries (a smaller number of teachers being needed) will nearly 
or quite meet the expense of transportation. In many cases, large 
boys who attend the high school are employed to drive the convey- 
ance. As they desire to be in school and often would use a horse 
or team for their own convenience, they can be employed to do this 
work at very reasonable wages. No complaint has come from this 
arrangement where it has been tried. 

VII. Selfishness. Some patrons who live in large, wealthy dis- 
tricts object to consolidation on the ground that their district would 
do more for the consolidated school than the small, weak districts. 
The same argument might be used by the large land owners and 
wealthy people of any district, yet no one would hardly propose that 
the poor man's child should stop school at the end of the third, 



CONSOLIDATION OP SCHOOLS 



15 



fourth, or fifth year because its father did not pay as much tax as 
some others. No, when it comes to education the American people 
as a rule are very democratic; they believe in giving every child an 
equal opportunity. Again, considering its ability to pay the levy 
the poor district might do much more in proportion to its valuation 
than the wealthy one. As this objection is founded upon selfishness 
pure and simple, it is necessary to get the one using it to see that as 
a citizen he owes some duty to his neighbors and to his country. 

VIII. Other Objections. The assertion has been made that 
when children from different homes are conveyed in the same wagon, 
there will be great danger of spreading contagious diseases. Ohio 
has a large number of consolidated schools. The former State 
Superintendent of Public Schools speaking upon that subject says: 
""I can truthfully say that the experience of Ohio for the past fifteen 
years has shown that there is no valid ground for this objection." 
There is less danger in a wagon than in a poorly ventilated and over- 
heated school room. 

There are other objections made such as children will be away 
from home longer, they will be required to eat cold lunch, many 
teachers will be thrown out of employment, etc. These are not real 
objections but simply excuses made by those opposed to consolida- 
tion. 

In concluding the objections, it is worth while to state again 
that the greatest objection is the increased expense. It should be 
fcorne in mind, however, that there can be no substantial improve- 
ment of schools or anything else without expenditure of money. 

CONSOLIDATION IN MISSOURI 

Consolidation in Missouri began in 1902. Four districts united 
in organizing what is known as the Ruskin High School near Hick- 
man Mills in Jackson County. The grade work is continued in the 
four original one-room buildings. The eighth grade work and four 
years of high school work are done in the central or high school 
building. 

There are four teachers in the "ward schools" — one for each 
building — and three in the high school. The enumeration of the con- 
solidated district is 243; the enrollment in the four "ward schools" 
is 172 and in the high school 40. 

The salary of the principal of the high school is $100.00 per 
month; of the two assistants $65.00 each; of the "ward school" teach- 
ers $50.00 each. The amount spent for school purposes the last year 
was $4781.94, the levy being sixty cents on the one hundred dollar 
on the assessed valuation of $625,000. 



16 



UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI BULLETIN 




Raskin High School, Jackson County, Missouri, situated in the open 
country. Missouri needs one hundred schools of this type. 

There were eleven graduates from the common school course 
this year and six from the high school. 

This school represents a type of rural consolidation where the 
high school is located in the open country and the grade work is 
done in the original buildings. 

Elmer, Macon County, is a type of consolidation where a village 
is used as a center and all the work is done in a central building. 
No arrangement is made for transportation. The children come from 
the 'three original districts, some a distance of three miles, but no 
complaint is made and the people are pleased with the plan. 

There are a number of schools in the State that have been formed 
by one or more districts or parts of districts voting to become a. 
part of another district. Some of these are doing high school work,, 
but they were not organized under the law providing for consolida- 
tion. 

There is not a consolidated school in Missouri where all the 
grade and high school work is centralized in a building located in 
the open country. This is the next move in the educational advance- 
ment of the State. 

HOW TO CONSOLIDATE. 

Before attempting any movement for consolidation, those inter- 
ested in the matter should make a careful study of the two laws, one- 



CONSOLIDATION OF SCHOOLS \J 

providing for consolidation and the other for joint high schools and' 
decide which plan they prefer. The important points of both laws- 
are given on pages 18 and 19. 

In case a community chooses to consolidate, the method of pro- 
cedure is very simple, which is to secure a petition of twenty-five 
qualified voters in the community affected, stating that they desire 
to form a consolidated district; the petition should then be filed with 
the county superintendent of public schools. The county superin- 
tendent will then visit the community and in conference with the cit- 
izens affected, will proceed to lay out the consolidated district, make 
a plat of the same, post notices of election and call the meeting to- 
order or deputize someone to act in his place. 

Before circulating a petition, it should be borne in mind that the 
proposed consolidated district must contain at least twelve square 
miles of territory, or, have at least an enumeration of two hundred 
children of school age. In making this estimate, the proposed con- 
solidated district must not include within its territory any town or 
city which has by the last enumeration two hundred children of 
school age. 

Procedure. After the notices are posted, it is time to arrange 
for public meetings. The aim of these meetings is to show the ad- 
vantages of consolidation and to answer objections. It may be best 
first to hold a meeting of those who are in favor of the measure in 
order to decide upon a campaign. There should be a meeting in each 
district or part of district affected and a strong effort should be 
made to get as many as possible to attend. Men, women and children 
should be urged to be present. It often happens that boys and girls 
who are ready to enter a high school are the first to see the advan- 
tages of consolidation and not infrequently women become strong 
supporters of the measure before the men are aroused. Good speak- 
ers who are interested in consolidation should be secured for these 
meetings. A whirlwind campaign should be carried on. 

By a little effort some public spirited citizen or citizens may be 
induced to donate a suitable site for the central building. Not less- 
than five acres can, according to law, be considered for this purpose. 
Some generous gifts have been made to public schools in the way of 
campus, library and other equipment, and others will be made when 
the matter is properly presented. 

There should be a strong organization for the purpose of push- 
ing the campaign. There should be a local committee of three for 
each district or part of district affected to push the campaign. There 
should be an executive committee composed of some one from each 
comprised in the proposed consolidated district. The executive comr 



18 UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI BULLETIN 

mittee should meet often. There will be questions arising and im- 
portant matters to be considered which the friends of the proposition 
should know. All facts should be made as clear as possible. Some- 
times people vote against consolidation because the law and the facts 
have not been made clear. 

The valuation of the proposed consolidated district, the number 
of teachers that will probably be needed, the length of the school 
term and the levy necessary for maintaining the school should all 
be considered; there should be no room for any misunderstanding 
on any of these points. There should be a mass meeting of all the 
•districts or parts of districts affected just before the date for voting. 
This will give an opportunity to clear up anything that may not be 
understood and to answer all objections that may have been made. 

LAW ON CONSOLIDATION 

Some important provisions of the law on consolidation are the 
following: A petition signed by twenty-five qualified voters of the 
-community shall be filed with the county superintendent. It then 
becomes his duty to investigate the needs of the community and to 
■determine the boundary lines of the proposed consolidated district. 
The district must contain at least twelve square miles of territory 
or have an enumeration of at least two hundred children of school 
age. No district shall be formed which shall include within its ter- 
ritory any town or city district enumerating two hundred children 
of school age. 

The county superintendent shall call a special meeting of the 
qualified voters of the proposed consolidated district. He shall make 
the call by posting within the proposed district ten notices in public 
places, stating the time, place and purpose of meeting. The notice 
shall be given fifteen days before the date set for the meeting. The 
superintendent shall also post five plats of the proposed district fif- 
teen days prior to the time of the meeting. These plats and notices 
shall be posted within thirty days after the filing of the petition. 
The superintendent shall file a copy of petition and of plat with the 
county clerk and shall send or take one plat to the special meeting. 
The meeting shall be called to order by the county superintendent 
of schools or some one deputized by him to call the meeting to order. 
The meeting shall then elect a chairman and secretary and proceed 
in accordance with section 10865, Revised Statutes, 1909. If a ma- 
jority vote in favor of the proposition it is carried. The meeting 
should then proceed to elect six directors, two for three years, two 
for two years and two for one year. Directors must be elected by 
ballot, one at a time. 



CONSOLIDATION OF SCHOOLS 19 

Transportation may be voted on at the special meeting, if notice 
of the same is given. It requires two-thirds of the votes cast on 
transportation to carry the proposition. If transportation is not pro- 
vided it shall then be the duty of the board to maintain an elemen- 
tary school within two and one-half miles by the nearest traveled 
road of the home of each child of school age within the school dis- 
trict. 

If transportation is not provided, a consolidated district may de- 
cide by a majority vote at any annual or special meeting to have the 
seventh and eighth grade work done at the central high school build- 
ing. This work may be discontinued at the central high school build- 
ing by a majority vote taken at any annual or special meeting. 

Whenever a consolidated district shall have secured a site of not 
less than five acres and shall have erected a building thereon suitable 
for a central school and containing one large assembly room and 
shall have installed a modern system of heating and ventilating, the 
Scate shall pay one-fourth of the cost of the building and equipment, 
provided the amount which the State pays does not exceed two 
thousand dollars (.$2000.00). 

When a consolidated district has provided an adequate building, 
the State shall grant a special aid of twenty-five dollars ($25.00) per 
year for each square mile, or fraction thereof, of territory included in 
the consolidated district provided the district maintains an improved 
high school of the third class and gives an approved course in agri- 
culture for one year, but no district shall receive more than eight 
hundred dollars ($800.00) under the provisions of this section. 

The full text of the consolidation law of 1913 may be secured by 
writing the Honorable Wm. P. Evans, State Superintendent of Public 
Instruction, Jefferson City, Missouri. 

JOINT HIGH SCHOOL 

Section 10852, p. 62, of the School Laws of Missouri provides for 
the establishment of Joint High Schools. The difference between this 
class of schools and consolidated schools should be clearly under- 
stood. The two are often confused; sometimes when a plan for 
consolidation is submitted, the misunderstanding due to the confu- 
sion of the two plans, contributes in a large measure to the defeat of 
the proposition. 

The section referred to provides that when any district will fur- 
nish, heat, and keep in order a room or rooms for high school pur- 
poses, then any three or more districts may unite with it for the pur- 
pose of maintaining a joint high school. The section further pro- 
vides that not over twenty per cent of the teachers' funds shall be 
set aside for this purpose. This law is not equitable; it places the 



20 UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI BULLETIN 

burden on one district to build, equip, and keep up a room or rooms 
to be used for high school purposes. Again, it requires the other 
districts which unite with it to set aside only one-fifth of the teach- 
ers' fund for the maintenance of the high school. The average rural 
district does not pay more than $50.00 per month; one fifth would 
be $10.00 per month; there would be only $30.00 per month coming 
from these three districts to be used for high school instruction. 
Any one can see that this arrangement is not fair. In the last twenty 
years there has been only two joint high schools established in Mis- 
souri. The law should be repealed or so modified that it would 
be equitable. 

TRANSPORTATION 

The School Law of Missouri provides for the transportation of 
pupils. Whenever it is deemed advisable by the school board or 
when the board is petitioned by ten taxpayers, the question must be 
submitted to the qualified voters at the annual or a special meeting. 
The proposition must be carried by a two-thirds vote of the tax- 
payers, p. 9, School Laws of Missouri, 1911. 

Only pupils living more than one-half mile from the school build- 
ing can be provided with transportation. The board has power to 
make all needful rules and regulations for the transportation of pupils 
and must require a reasonable bond from every person employed for 
that purpose. 

When transportation is provided at public expense, the district 
should provide the wagon and hire the driver who furnishes the team. 
The number of drivers will depend on the number of children. In 
some districts common wagons are used fitted up with water tight 
curtains. Some schools use the ordinary wagon box with seats ar- 
ranged along the sides and with a water-proof cover and side cur- 
tains. Some use wagons with springs like the dray wagons or those 
used for express purposes, while others. use wagons which look very 
much like a bus. The kind of wagon needed can easily be deter- 
mined by the district, and will depend largely upon the amount of 
money to be invested for this purpose. 



THE 

UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI 

BULLETIN 



EXTENSION SERIES 



EDITED BY 

SAMUEL D. GROMER 



Published by 
UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI 
Columbia, Missouri 
Issued Quarterly 



Entered at the postofflce at Columbia, Mis- 
souri, as second-class matter, April 9, 1913, under 
Act of August 24, 1912. 



Copies of the University of Missouri Bulletin, Extension Series, 
may be obtained from the Secretary of University Extension, Colum- 
bia, Missouri. 15.000 



